Bard Financial Services Inc. Purchases New Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Bard Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,935 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $328,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,681 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 18.9% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,556 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,607,000 after purchasing an additional 2,152 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 80.2% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 16,475 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,953,000 after purchasing an additional 7,331 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,705,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PRU has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $120.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 52,595 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.52 per share, with a total value of $1,500,009.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 139,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,992,429.24. This trade represents a 60.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU traded down $2.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $102.88. 1,358,187 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,646,374. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.38 and a 12 month high of $130.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $103.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $111.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market cap of $36.42 billion, a PE ratio of 13.77, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.07.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.76 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.12 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.58%.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance, investment management, and other financial products and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through PGIM, Retirement Strategies, Group Insurance, Individual Life, and International Businesses segments.